Benzodiazepines, Antipsychotics Often Recommended as 'Trip Killers'

Trip killers were mainly discussed in reference to LSD, psilocybin mushrooms, and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine

By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, Dec. 20, 2023 (HealthDay News) — Reddit users often recommend benzodiazepines and antipsychotics as “trip killers,” to counter the effect of psychedelic drugs, according to a study published online Dec. 19 in the Emergency Medical Journal.

Gregory Yates and Emily Melon, from Manchester Royal Infirmary in the United Kingdom, gathered descriptive data on the use of psychedelic trip killers by analyzing posts made on Reddit, a publicly available, anonymous social media website. A total of 128 relevant threads were identified from 2015 to 2023, yielding 709 posts.

The researchers found that the most commonly recommended trip killers were benzodiazepines and antipsychotics (46 and 18 percent, respectively). Trip killers were mainly discussed in reference to lysergic acid diethylamide, psilocybin mushrooms, and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (235, 143, and 21, respectively). Of the posts, only 58 included warnings relating to the potential adverse effects of trip killers.

“We recommend that emergency physicians ask patients about trip killers if psychedelic drug use is suspected. This conversation should occur promptly on arrival to hospital, and before any benzodiazepines or antipsychotics are prescribed,” the authors write. “Doing so could offset an indirect risk to these patients — iatrogenic overdose — and will improve understanding of their mixed toxidrome.”